Category Archives: Herbs

G, H, I of an Allotment and Kitchen

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On with the mystery magical tour

G is for Green Tomatoes and Gem Squash

G is for Gem Squash - a South African variety of squash which can be eaten young or stored over winter. A small vining squash that produces numerous Gems. Delicious eaten when boiled (you prick the skin first) for 20 to 30 minutes, cut the top off, scoop the seeds out and add a dab or two of butter, some salt and pepper and if you like it some ground allspice. Eat with a spoon – let’s call it a meal in its own bowl.

And the other G’s? Well there is always Grass to mow and a Harvest of  Heirloom/Heritage Green tomatoes to ripen, except if they are called Green Doctor, and are a tasty cherry tomato green with a pinkish-red hue.

H is for Herbs, Hanging Baskets, Heritage or Heirloom varieties

No kitchen or garden should be without Herbs and spices, somehow I never seem to manage to grow enough. But I do enjoy seeing the Coriander flowers, so pretty and delicate, a bonus to bolting herbs.

I grow a couple of tomato plants that are perfect for Hanging Baskets, they are the first to produce and take so little room. teeny red or yellow cherries to tempt the passer-by, or a quick fix for a lunch time snack.

I grow plenty of Heritage or Heirloom varieties be it tomatoes, carrots, beans or peas. Vegetables with a long history, of differing colours, of non-uniformity, of fabulous taste. A celebration in it’s own right.

I is for Icicle Radish, Iznick Cucumber Ice Cold Beer,

You can see I was starting to struggle here can’t you ! I had to reach for my seed packets for inspiration.

I grow Icicle radishes pretty much every year, a firey white long tapered radish, but they have all been snaffled and munched.

What I do still have growing  are Iznick Cucumbers, a small snack-sized cucumber that can be grown outdoors. It’s another of the F1′s which I’m trying to wean myself off, but so far I’ve yet to find a great replacement. It’s delicious eaten young, not too seedy and the skin doesn’t need peeling. Perfect for salads but my favourite is to eat them thinly sliced and served with a dressing of rice wine vinegar, lime and a pinch of sugar alongside some stor fried noodles.

And when living so close to the sea there is always the possibility that I abandon the allotment, garden and kitchen and just head out to a bar overlooking the beach for an Ice Cold Beer or Glass of Wine, of course I could have an Ice Cream but can’t handle the dairy. Hey-ho, that’s the way life works out! I’ve Gone to the beach

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Red and Green should never be seen (except maybe with Pink)

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Chive Vinegar

In the case of lettuce I have to disagree, red and green salads look great growing on the allotment together and even better mixed together in a salad bowl. Soft buttery lettuce Bronze Arrow mixed with sharp crisp endive De Meaux. What’s … Continue reading →

Garden Herbs and Spring Stirrings

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There are signs of new life. The garden is stirring. Slowly waking up. Responding to the increase in day light and warmer weather. Bright yellow-green shoots emerging from the subterranean world.

I have yet to clear the garden from this Autumn-Winter. I leave the flower stalks and dead leaves until early Spring. The dried flower heads leave something for me to look at, some seeds for birds and somewhere for insects to over-winter.

The Chives will be coming out of their pots later this Spring and will be used as part of the Edible Edging I have planned in the garden.

Bronze Fennel makes a wonderful border plant, the frothy fronds will give a leafy backdrop to flowers in the borders.

The garden Mint in a pot needs transplanting to something much bigger, maybe the old earthen ware sink would be perfect.

Another herb for the Edible Edging, the Curly Parsley has survived the winter well, putting on new growth. These plants will do well again this year, but I must remember to plant more for next.

The Rosemary seems confused, in flower and it’s only February. Or maybe it’s “stressed” in the pot and needs some much needed TLC.

The Purple Sage is looking ragged, but it has survived the winter, and will perk up with warmer drier weather.

Sorrel, not strictly a herb I know, but his red veined variety is stunning. I must get round to transplanting it soon.

A Purple Artichoke that will find a permanent home on the allotment, it will be at least another year before I get to sample its wares.

A few Strawberries in pots need re-homing on the allotment too. I look at the new growth and dream of sweet sunshine juicy fruit.

So much to do, so many seeds to sow, including the summer herbs of Coriander, Basil and Tarragon, there is plenty of re-potting and planting out, but for now I can content myself with looking at the new shoots.

Curry Leaves

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Without curry leaves I think the world would be a poorer place.

CURRY LEAF ~ Murraya koenigii. I can’t face spending over £9.00, plus p&p on a single curry leaf plant. SoI  have bought a fresh batch of curry leaves from an Oriental shop and this morning picked some of the strongest looking stems/twigs, took off the lower leaves and placed some in a glass of water and some, with a bit of rooting powder into a sandy compost mix, to see if I can’t get them to grow myself. I’ll leave them indoors on a sunny windowsill until I see some signs of life or new growth, and then as summer warms up I’ll place them outside, again in a sunny spot.

The rest of the leaves, were stripped from the stalks and frozen in an air-tight container.

Here’s wishing for fresh homegrown curry leaves to scent up our lives

What Wikipedia say about them – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curry_Tree